OPP looking for seatbelt compliance over Easter weekend

Seatbelts will be the Ontario Provincial Police’s main focus over the Easter long weekend.

Officers are urging non-compliant drivers and passengers who continue to put themselves and others at risk to buckle up every time they drive.

They are asking motorists to work with them to keep 2014 seatbelt-related deaths, currently sitting at nine in OPP jurisdiction, from rising.

Road users should expect to see much higher volumes of traffic over the long weekend.

Drivers are responsible for ensuring that passengers under the age of 16 are properly restrained and that an approved infant or child car seat is properly installed.

The nine people who have died so far this year in collisions where lack of proper restraint was cited as a factor range from 21-64 years old.

“Young drivers tend to get a bad rap when it comes to seatbelt compliance. We are seeing more young drivers than ever buckling up and taking the risks associated with lack of restraint very seriously early on in their driving years….,” OPP Deputy Commissioner Brad Blair, Provincial Commander for Traffic Safety and Operational Support, said in a press release.

“The OPP is very proud that Ontarians have a generally high compliance rate with seatbelt laws, but there are still a handful of people who need to adopt the same voluntary compliance mindset as the majority of road users. Driving is a privilege, but is too often thought of as a right…. ,” added Chief Superintendent Don Bell, Commander of the OPP’s Highway Safety Division.

Over the Easter weekend the OPP also will be on the lookout for distracted driving, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, speeding and other forms of aggressive driving.